1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:14,540 When you think about buying spreadsheet software, of course, the first thing you think about 2 00:00:14,540 --> 00:00:16,360 is Lotus 1-2-3. 3 00:00:16,360 --> 00:00:20,260 The product which established the spreadsheet is a major PC application. 4 00:00:20,260 --> 00:00:24,080 But nowadays, there's a whole new generation of spreadsheet programs which provide new 5 00:00:24,080 --> 00:00:26,040 levels of functionality and power. 6 00:00:26,040 --> 00:00:30,280 Today, we take a look at this new generation of spreadsheet software, both for the IBM 7 00:00:30,280 --> 00:00:46,960 PC and the Macintosh, on this edition of the Computer Chronicles. 8 00:00:46,960 --> 00:01:02,480 The Computer Chronicles is made possible by Leading Edge, makers of IBM-compatible computer 9 00:01:02,480 --> 00:01:07,040 systems including word processing with spelling correction, communication software, and Hays 10 00:01:07,040 --> 00:01:10,440 compatible 1200 and 2400 baud modems. 11 00:01:10,440 --> 00:01:13,760 Leading Edge, with over 1,000 service centers nationwide. 12 00:01:13,760 --> 00:01:16,840 Leading Edge, leading the way to the information age. 13 00:01:16,840 --> 00:01:20,480 Additional funding is provided by McGraw-Hill, publishers of Byte. 14 00:01:20,480 --> 00:01:25,080 Byte's detailed technical articles on new hardware, software, and languages cover developments 15 00:01:25,080 --> 00:01:33,520 in computer technology worldwide. 16 00:01:33,520 --> 00:01:34,800 Welcome to the Computer Chronicles. 17 00:01:34,800 --> 00:01:37,000 I'm Stuart Shafae and this is Gary Kildall. 18 00:01:37,000 --> 00:01:40,640 Gary, when we looked at spreadsheet software last week, we were talking about the MS-DOS 19 00:01:40,640 --> 00:01:44,560 world, IBM's, as you tend to when you're talking about business software. 20 00:01:44,560 --> 00:01:48,000 This is a Macintosh, believe it or not, the new Mac 2. 21 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:51,000 And we hear an awful lot about the Mac in the business marketplace. 22 00:01:51,000 --> 00:01:53,880 This looks and acts a lot more like a business type computer. 23 00:01:53,880 --> 00:01:54,880 What do you think? 24 00:01:54,880 --> 00:01:57,280 Is the Mac going to be a serious player for people who use spreadsheets and that kind 25 00:01:57,280 --> 00:01:58,280 of thing? 26 00:01:58,280 --> 00:02:00,280 Well, Stuart, you know when the Mac was first introduced several years ago, it really wasn't 27 00:02:00,280 --> 00:02:02,200 targeted at the business market itself. 28 00:02:02,200 --> 00:02:06,520 In those days, typical business applications were spreadsheet, word processor, database 29 00:02:06,520 --> 00:02:07,520 kind of work. 30 00:02:07,520 --> 00:02:11,080 And it was really a graphics engine with a small, slow disk and so forth. 31 00:02:11,080 --> 00:02:13,280 But the two worlds of business and Mac have sort of come together. 32 00:02:13,280 --> 00:02:14,600 In business now, it's very important. 33 00:02:14,600 --> 00:02:17,560 Desktop publishing is a very important aspect of it. 34 00:02:17,560 --> 00:02:20,640 Image processing, general rich text, things of this sort. 35 00:02:20,640 --> 00:02:25,320 Now the Mac has got now a large size screen, big hard disk, and so we can really see those 36 00:02:25,320 --> 00:02:26,520 two things working together. 37 00:02:26,520 --> 00:02:30,080 Now also Apple has announced their LAN strategy, hook up to IBM machines. 38 00:02:30,080 --> 00:02:32,200 So it could be a good choice for business. 39 00:02:32,200 --> 00:02:35,560 Gary, we're going to take a look at two of the top rated spreadsheet programs for the 40 00:02:35,560 --> 00:02:37,800 Macintosh, Excel and Trapeze. 41 00:02:37,800 --> 00:02:42,280 And we'll also see two new generation spreadsheet programs for the IBM, things that do a lot 42 00:02:42,280 --> 00:02:44,440 more than the traditional spreadsheet. 43 00:02:44,440 --> 00:02:48,200 Now one of the alternatives spreadsheet users have are the low cost alternatives. 44 00:02:48,200 --> 00:02:52,040 And one of the big issues in spreadsheets right now is the whole issue of look and feel. 45 00:02:52,040 --> 00:02:56,440 We're going to start out with a report on that. 46 00:02:56,440 --> 00:02:59,440 This is a computer spreadsheet screen. 47 00:02:59,440 --> 00:03:02,040 This is a computer spreadsheet screen. 48 00:03:02,040 --> 00:03:03,820 And so is this. 49 00:03:03,820 --> 00:03:08,440 If they look similar, that's part of the reason for a sudden increase in lawsuits between 50 00:03:08,440 --> 00:03:10,040 software developers. 51 00:03:10,040 --> 00:03:16,280 Lotus, best known for its 123 program, is suing Paperback software over the similarity 52 00:03:16,280 --> 00:03:22,280 of its VP Planner program and Mosaic software for its twin spreadsheet. 53 00:03:22,280 --> 00:03:29,520 The heart of the complaint is that Mosaic and Paperback both infringe the overall quote 54 00:03:29,520 --> 00:03:34,040 look and feel of the Lotus 123 program. 55 00:03:34,040 --> 00:03:40,040 Specifically what they've claimed is that the defendants have used identical or very 56 00:03:40,040 --> 00:03:47,480 similar program names or command names, very similar menu structure and sub menu structure, 57 00:03:47,480 --> 00:03:53,960 same kind of syntax in the language that they use in the programs, such that the user who 58 00:03:53,960 --> 00:03:58,200 looks at one program versus the other will say the overall look and feel is essentially 59 00:03:58,200 --> 00:04:00,000 the same. 60 00:04:00,000 --> 00:04:05,960 While a program's source code is clearly protected by law, the elusive look and feel of a screen 61 00:04:05,960 --> 00:04:12,240 display is a relatively new aspect of software protection and open to sharp disagreement. 62 00:04:12,240 --> 00:04:18,600 The idea is that a lot of the functionality that people need you cannot patent or copyright. 63 00:04:18,600 --> 00:04:28,280 And further, a lot of the user interface words and things ought to be available to many people, 64 00:04:28,280 --> 00:04:32,640 especially that the very common words are used in many cases. 65 00:04:32,640 --> 00:04:37,000 Take a simple book, any book that you have, well, those are all words that are in the 66 00:04:37,000 --> 00:04:38,000 English language. 67 00:04:38,000 --> 00:04:39,940 And in that sense, they're not original. 68 00:04:39,940 --> 00:04:45,200 What becomes original is the manner in which the developer puts them together, the way 69 00:04:45,200 --> 00:04:50,000 that he organizes them or orders them or sequences them. 70 00:04:50,000 --> 00:04:52,640 That's what gets protected by copyright law. 71 00:04:52,640 --> 00:04:57,840 A recent case involving communications software could have a significant impact on future 72 00:04:57,840 --> 00:04:59,560 look and feel cases. 73 00:04:59,560 --> 00:05:06,160 DCA, which owns the Crosstalk program, sued the Softclone company for its mirror communications 74 00:05:06,160 --> 00:05:07,360 package. 75 00:05:07,360 --> 00:05:10,280 The court ruled in favor of the plaintiff. 76 00:05:10,280 --> 00:05:18,560 Given that the court in that case held that essentially one key screen was enough to constitute 77 00:05:18,560 --> 00:05:24,560 copyrightable material and found that the defendants had infringed that one key screen, 78 00:05:24,560 --> 00:05:32,560 that means that cloning user interfaces is going to be extremely suspect in the future. 79 00:05:32,560 --> 00:05:37,760 One of the many difficulties encountered by software developers is the overwhelming dominance 80 00:05:37,760 --> 00:05:43,220 of a handful of programs, which some companies view as de facto standards. 81 00:05:43,220 --> 00:05:49,040 And when you go into a stretched market, you realize that there is primarily one customer 82 00:05:49,040 --> 00:05:51,560 that dominates the market, and that is Lotus. 83 00:05:51,560 --> 00:05:56,200 They probably have approximately 60 to 80 percent of the marketplace. 84 00:05:56,200 --> 00:06:03,400 So the already existing de facto standards in the marketplace make it literally impossible 85 00:06:03,400 --> 00:06:09,160 for anybody to enter that marketplace or do anything constructive. 86 00:06:09,160 --> 00:06:14,120 All sides agree, for different reasons, that the outcome of these cases will have a major 87 00:06:14,120 --> 00:06:17,040 impact on the future of original software. 88 00:06:17,040 --> 00:06:22,000 Assume what's going to happen if in the worst case scenario, Lotus wins. 89 00:06:22,000 --> 00:06:24,200 Absolutely, it's going to be chaos. 90 00:06:24,200 --> 00:06:28,720 I mean, people are going to start doing things just for the sake of being different. 91 00:06:28,720 --> 00:06:30,880 They're going to make it different. 92 00:06:30,880 --> 00:06:36,680 And it's going to be incredibly hard for any user to do anything with any of these programs. 93 00:06:36,680 --> 00:06:41,760 One of the purposes of the copyright laws is to reward people's invention. 94 00:06:41,760 --> 00:06:46,120 I don't know what kind of creativity it is that's being stifled in this case. 95 00:06:46,120 --> 00:06:49,200 Is cloning considered that creative? 96 00:06:49,200 --> 00:06:50,560 I'm not sure. 97 00:06:50,560 --> 00:06:55,760 I think that perhaps more creativity comes out of the fact that authors are rewarded 98 00:06:55,760 --> 00:07:08,200 for what they've done. 99 00:07:08,200 --> 00:07:12,200 Joining us in the studio now is Mike Slay, the Macintosh products manager with Microsoft, 100 00:07:12,200 --> 00:07:13,560 the makers of Excel. 101 00:07:13,560 --> 00:07:17,200 Next to Mike is Andrew Wolfe, president of DataTailor, Inc., makers of Trapeze. 102 00:07:17,200 --> 00:07:18,200 Gary. 103 00:07:18,200 --> 00:07:22,280 Mike, the first, I guess, the granddaddy of spreadsheets, VisiCalc, was a character-oriented 104 00:07:22,280 --> 00:07:26,480 spreadsheet and there was a major generation change when 1, 2, 3 came out with graphics 105 00:07:26,480 --> 00:07:27,480 and so forth. 106 00:07:27,480 --> 00:07:31,040 Now, is the Mac 2 going to be a generation change also in spreadsheets? 107 00:07:31,040 --> 00:07:34,640 Well, I think the Macintosh in general helped that occur. 108 00:07:34,640 --> 00:07:39,400 The whole notion of a graphical user interface with pull-down menus and a mouse and icons 109 00:07:39,400 --> 00:07:43,000 led us to sign a spreadsheet, Excel, that was much more like working with pieces of 110 00:07:43,000 --> 00:07:46,120 paper on a desktop and letting you make relations between those pieces of paper. 111 00:07:46,120 --> 00:07:49,440 And this just extends that in many nice ways, color, graphics, speed. 112 00:07:49,440 --> 00:07:52,000 Andy, what are your thoughts on it? 113 00:07:52,000 --> 00:07:56,040 Well, I see the machine as allowing people to do things they have not been able to do 114 00:07:56,040 --> 00:08:01,280 before, work with larger spreadsheets, be able to calculate more complex models, display 115 00:08:01,280 --> 00:08:05,680 more charts, and that is going to improve a lot of people's productivity. 116 00:08:05,680 --> 00:08:06,680 Okay. 117 00:08:06,680 --> 00:08:09,520 Now, Mike, you have a demonstration for how Excel can give us, right? 118 00:08:09,520 --> 00:08:10,520 That's right. 119 00:08:10,520 --> 00:08:11,520 Okay. 120 00:08:11,520 --> 00:08:15,240 So, as you see here on the screen, Excel doesn't look much like a traditional spreadsheet. 121 00:08:15,240 --> 00:08:18,720 You have not one but several different worksheets open, and they look like different pieces 122 00:08:18,720 --> 00:08:20,480 of paper on your desk, Mike. 123 00:08:20,480 --> 00:08:25,120 You can zoom the screen up and work with one or several sheets at a time and build formulas 124 00:08:25,120 --> 00:08:28,520 by pointing and clicking, strolling around the worksheet just by using the mouse. 125 00:08:28,520 --> 00:08:29,520 It's very simple. 126 00:08:29,520 --> 00:08:30,520 It's a very large worksheet. 127 00:08:30,520 --> 00:08:32,840 It's very fast, very easy to work with. 128 00:08:32,840 --> 00:08:36,960 It's very easy, for example, to build relationships between worksheets just by pointing and clicking. 129 00:08:36,960 --> 00:08:42,440 I can take these two subsidiary spreadsheets and just paste in the names for them and link 130 00:08:42,440 --> 00:08:45,600 them to this total spreadsheet. 131 00:08:45,600 --> 00:08:50,880 And without having to do any complex math or anything, I can just enter the formula, 132 00:08:50,880 --> 00:08:55,000 and it's automatically built so that later if one of these values changes, say, from 133 00:08:55,000 --> 00:09:00,880 71,000 to a much larger number like 710,000, you see the number is instantly reflected 134 00:09:00,880 --> 00:09:02,360 up here in the total spreadsheet. 135 00:09:02,360 --> 00:09:06,240 In a product like 123, not only couldn't you do that, but you couldn't even think about 136 00:09:06,240 --> 00:09:09,040 doing it because you could only see one spreadsheet at a time. 137 00:09:09,040 --> 00:09:13,800 In the same way, it's very easy then to take a group of numbers and very quickly open a 138 00:09:13,800 --> 00:09:16,800 window that has a graphical representation of those numbers. 139 00:09:16,800 --> 00:09:19,760 And that window can then be linked to those numbers. 140 00:09:19,760 --> 00:09:21,560 And I'll show you how that works in just a second here. 141 00:09:21,560 --> 00:09:25,280 So you can see I have a graph now that represents those numbers. 142 00:09:25,280 --> 00:09:31,360 And if one of these numbers up here changes to a smaller number, you'll see the graph 143 00:09:31,360 --> 00:09:34,300 is instantly redrawn to reflect that change. 144 00:09:34,300 --> 00:09:37,840 So you get visual feedback, and you can have as many charts or spreadsheets open at a time 145 00:09:37,840 --> 00:09:38,840 as you like. 146 00:09:38,840 --> 00:09:41,040 It's also very easy to change what the graph looks like. 147 00:09:41,040 --> 00:09:44,920 There's a built-in pictorial gallery, another innovation that the Macintosh facilitates 148 00:09:44,920 --> 00:09:48,600 that lets you pick between different kinds of charts and have the chart be redrawn in 149 00:09:48,600 --> 00:09:50,600 whatever format it is that you'd like to see it in. 150 00:09:50,600 --> 00:09:54,280 And so rather than pick from some list of charts, it's very nice to be able to see a 151 00:09:54,280 --> 00:09:56,680 pictorial representation of that. 152 00:09:56,680 --> 00:10:02,440 One of the nicest strengths of a product like Excel is that it lets you automate things. 153 00:10:02,440 --> 00:10:06,040 And what I'm going to do here now is close all those spreadsheets and open what's called 154 00:10:06,040 --> 00:10:07,040 a macro. 155 00:10:07,040 --> 00:10:10,160 And Excel actually records what you do. 156 00:10:10,160 --> 00:10:12,160 It learns what you do, and will then play it back. 157 00:10:12,160 --> 00:10:15,880 And I'm going to show you an example of something that Excel recorded my actions and turned 158 00:10:15,880 --> 00:10:17,800 them into a thing called a macro. 159 00:10:17,800 --> 00:10:22,260 And now it's going to automate the process of entering data, which notice it's actually 160 00:10:22,260 --> 00:10:29,680 prompting me with this little dialog box, and then asking me to put the data in. 161 00:10:29,680 --> 00:10:34,040 And then it takes the data, reformats it, and puts up a chart window of the data without 162 00:10:34,040 --> 00:10:35,160 me having to do anything. 163 00:10:35,160 --> 00:10:37,160 And that's really what computing is all about. 164 00:10:37,160 --> 00:10:39,320 Yeah, and you didn't have to write the macro. 165 00:10:39,320 --> 00:10:41,800 It wrote the macro following what you were doing the last time around. 166 00:10:41,800 --> 00:10:44,960 Yeah, before I had just done those same commands, and it wrote the command line. 167 00:10:44,960 --> 00:10:48,320 You can write it if you like, but it's very simple to have Excel write it for you. 168 00:10:48,320 --> 00:10:50,280 And you can just go through. 169 00:10:50,280 --> 00:10:54,360 The new machine is going to give us opportunities to make Excel run in color and lots of things 170 00:10:54,360 --> 00:10:55,760 to expand the capabilities of it. 171 00:10:55,760 --> 00:10:59,240 But since we've introduced the product, we've just had a fantastic reception to it. 172 00:10:59,240 --> 00:11:02,520 Speaking of color, Mike, if I can ask you to unload Excel and we can get Trapeze in 173 00:11:02,520 --> 00:11:03,520 there. 174 00:11:03,520 --> 00:11:06,360 And while Mike is doing that, Andrew, Trapeze does run in color. 175 00:11:06,360 --> 00:11:07,360 We're going to see that in just a minute. 176 00:11:07,360 --> 00:11:09,920 And one of the features of the Mac 2, of course, is the color. 177 00:11:09,920 --> 00:11:12,240 What role does color play in spreadsheets? 178 00:11:12,240 --> 00:11:13,240 Does it matter at all? 179 00:11:13,240 --> 00:11:19,800 Well, it can help the person who's developing a spreadsheet to show his numbers in a way 180 00:11:19,800 --> 00:11:22,400 that's easier for other people to comprehend and himself. 181 00:11:22,400 --> 00:11:28,340 He can show different numbers in red to show that he's losing money or highlight labels 182 00:11:28,340 --> 00:11:31,640 with color so that they're easy to find in a very large worksheet. 183 00:11:31,640 --> 00:11:36,680 And of course, you can do charts in color, which allows you to show the information much 184 00:11:36,680 --> 00:11:39,040 more graphically than just black and white can do. 185 00:11:39,040 --> 00:11:42,160 Maybe the best way to answer it is to run Trapeze for us, and we'll see how you do use 186 00:11:42,160 --> 00:11:43,160 color, Andrew. 187 00:11:43,160 --> 00:11:46,600 And why don't you tell us what you're doing as you do it. 188 00:11:46,600 --> 00:11:52,440 I'm just selecting three worksheets that I'm going to be showing and opening them all. 189 00:11:52,440 --> 00:11:58,600 So you notice the windows are in blue. 190 00:11:58,600 --> 00:12:02,840 The difference between Trapeze and a normal spreadsheet is that instead of having rows 191 00:12:02,840 --> 00:12:06,480 and columns, it's a free-form type of spreadsheet. 192 00:12:06,480 --> 00:12:11,400 The basic unit is a block, which is a collection of numbers, which can be a row, a column, 193 00:12:11,400 --> 00:12:13,280 or a table, or even just an individual value. 194 00:12:13,280 --> 00:12:18,360 And it has a name, which you can change and use the names to build formulas. 195 00:12:18,360 --> 00:12:22,800 So in this case, this total sales block is the sum of sales. 196 00:12:22,800 --> 00:12:25,920 So it knows that there are four values here, so it's sum of them. 197 00:12:25,920 --> 00:12:29,400 The formula over here is sales divided by total sales. 198 00:12:29,400 --> 00:12:33,800 So it understands that there are four values, and there's one value, so it needs to produce 199 00:12:33,800 --> 00:12:35,440 four values. 200 00:12:35,440 --> 00:12:39,900 And because the relationships are all built by name, I can take the block and move it 201 00:12:39,900 --> 00:12:41,920 anywhere I want, rearrange it. 202 00:12:41,920 --> 00:12:46,560 I can change its size and shape. 203 00:12:46,560 --> 00:12:51,000 I can change its font. 204 00:12:51,000 --> 00:12:52,880 And of course, the relationships don't change. 205 00:12:52,880 --> 00:13:00,480 The relationships are totally independent of where the block is located. 206 00:13:00,480 --> 00:13:04,360 And as you can see, there's also charts on the same page. 207 00:13:04,360 --> 00:13:08,600 The charts are built the same way, with a chart formula and then the block, the sales 208 00:13:08,600 --> 00:13:10,240 block and the region block. 209 00:13:10,240 --> 00:13:16,360 So as I change the number up here, you can see the chart will also change. 210 00:13:16,360 --> 00:13:18,200 And all the numbers will recalculate. 211 00:13:18,200 --> 00:13:22,200 Because the Macintosh is so good at doing fonts and styles and pictures, there's no 212 00:13:22,200 --> 00:13:25,440 reason why you can't include a picture in with your worksheet. 213 00:13:25,440 --> 00:13:29,480 This may be a trivial example, but it does show the ability to include graphics along 214 00:13:29,480 --> 00:13:34,840 with your spreadsheet, so that you can have a data entry form or an invoice and have calculations 215 00:13:34,840 --> 00:13:41,320 on top of it mixed in in different fonts along with your graph. 216 00:13:41,320 --> 00:13:48,520 Now this is a, I'll show you an example of how you can build a formula very easy without having to remember how to type things. 217 00:13:48,520 --> 00:13:52,400 Right here is the sum of investments, which is the block right here. 218 00:13:52,400 --> 00:13:58,640 Now I'm going to build this simply by pulling the sum function from the scrolling menu. 219 00:13:58,640 --> 00:14:02,000 And then down here is a list of all the open worksheets. 220 00:14:02,000 --> 00:14:05,760 So I can go to any worksheet that's in memory by name. 221 00:14:05,760 --> 00:14:11,560 So in this case, I'm going to get invest at the checkbox and it recalculated it. 222 00:14:11,560 --> 00:14:17,200 So Trapeze allows you to not only do calculations, but also to lay them out in an attractive 223 00:14:17,200 --> 00:14:21,480 manner and a lot of people who do calculations need to present them to people. 224 00:14:21,480 --> 00:14:26,560 So Trapeze allows you to do it without having to go to other programs to put all the pieces 225 00:14:26,560 --> 00:14:27,560 together. 226 00:14:27,560 --> 00:14:30,040 Andrew, is Trapeze written especially for the Mac 2 or does it run on? 227 00:14:30,040 --> 00:14:32,160 It runs on all Macintoshes. 228 00:14:32,160 --> 00:14:36,400 This version is the version we shipped in January long before the Mac 2 existed and 229 00:14:36,400 --> 00:14:39,080 it ran in color then. 230 00:14:39,080 --> 00:14:42,920 We are producing a version specifically for the Mac 2 to take advantage of additional 231 00:14:42,920 --> 00:14:44,960 colors and some other features it can do. 232 00:14:44,960 --> 00:14:45,960 Mike, what about Excel? 233 00:14:45,960 --> 00:14:51,600 Excel was written, at least almost two years ago, and it runs fine on the Mac 2, but it 234 00:14:51,600 --> 00:14:53,440 runs on the entire Macintosh family. 235 00:14:53,440 --> 00:14:57,680 And we are also working on a new version that will take more specific advantage of the capabilities. 236 00:14:57,680 --> 00:15:00,880 Gary, I think it's pretty clear the answer to your question is we've come a long way 237 00:15:00,880 --> 00:15:02,200 from Lotus 1, 2, 3. 238 00:15:02,200 --> 00:15:03,360 This is a generation leap. 239 00:15:03,360 --> 00:15:04,360 Gentlemen, thanks very much. 240 00:15:04,360 --> 00:15:07,760 We're going to be back in just a minute with two more spreadsheet programs that do a lot 241 00:15:07,760 --> 00:15:09,800 more than traditional spreadsheet work. 242 00:15:09,800 --> 00:15:11,240 One of them is called Words and Figures. 243 00:15:11,240 --> 00:15:12,640 The other is called Predict. 244 00:15:12,640 --> 00:15:25,800 So stay with us. 245 00:15:25,800 --> 00:15:28,720 With us now in the studio is Camillo Wilson. 246 00:15:28,720 --> 00:15:32,240 Camillo is president of Lifetree Software, makers of Words and Figures. 247 00:15:32,240 --> 00:15:35,960 Next to Camillo is Richard Roth, the director of Unison Technology, and they make a product 248 00:15:35,960 --> 00:15:36,960 called Predict. 249 00:15:36,960 --> 00:15:41,360 Camillo, on the last segment we just saw the Mac 2 with all the fancy high-resolution color 250 00:15:41,360 --> 00:15:42,760 graphics and so forth. 251 00:15:42,760 --> 00:15:46,840 You feel like people are going to move to that high-res graphics model or are we going 252 00:15:46,840 --> 00:15:48,680 to stick with the 1, 2, 3 model everybody knows? 253 00:15:48,680 --> 00:15:52,780 Well, there's no doubt that some people will want to look into the world of the future. 254 00:15:52,780 --> 00:15:54,200 People are always doing so. 255 00:15:54,200 --> 00:15:57,800 But the fact is that 1, 2, 3 right now has an install base of approximately two million 256 00:15:57,800 --> 00:16:00,360 copies and that are compatible programs. 257 00:16:00,360 --> 00:16:03,360 And the last thing that people want to do is to relearn what they already know. 258 00:16:03,360 --> 00:16:07,920 Now, Richard, both of you have products that really, I guess, improve upon the 1, 2, 3 259 00:16:07,920 --> 00:16:08,920 model. 260 00:16:08,920 --> 00:16:09,920 What sort of things have you done to yours? 261 00:16:09,920 --> 00:16:13,680 Well, what we've done is to take what everybody already knows in terms of the spreadsheet 262 00:16:13,680 --> 00:16:20,360 model and add in the capability that a small group of people want to be able to do to express 263 00:16:20,360 --> 00:16:24,600 uncertainty in their spreadsheets and forecasting and modeling various business situations. 264 00:16:24,600 --> 00:16:27,080 So this is an extension of the basic model. 265 00:16:27,080 --> 00:16:29,680 Camilo, can you show us the words and figures? 266 00:16:29,680 --> 00:16:30,680 Certainly. 267 00:16:30,680 --> 00:16:33,800 Words and figures was predicated on the idea that first of all people want the reasonably 268 00:16:33,800 --> 00:16:37,240 priced Lotus compatible spreadsheet, which is the first thing that a words and figures 269 00:16:37,240 --> 00:16:38,240 is. 270 00:16:38,240 --> 00:16:41,760 Then on top of that we added to words and figures the word processor, which is the most 271 00:16:41,760 --> 00:16:45,720 commonly used function that people do on their personal computers. 272 00:16:45,720 --> 00:16:47,800 So I will start here with a reconventional spreadsheet. 273 00:16:47,800 --> 00:16:49,600 Before you get to that, Camilo, I mean, what's the logic? 274 00:16:49,600 --> 00:16:53,040 I assume there's some premise here in terms of bringing the word processor into the spreadsheet. 275 00:16:53,040 --> 00:16:56,600 The premise is that if you have a financial story to tell, you may also want to tell people 276 00:16:56,600 --> 00:16:58,880 a qualitative verbal story about it. 277 00:16:58,880 --> 00:17:03,320 You want to brag about your profits or to be sorry about your losses. 278 00:17:03,320 --> 00:17:07,960 So for example, here we have a regular spreadsheet and like any spreadsheet would, if you change 279 00:17:07,960 --> 00:17:10,880 one number, the totals change and all the percentages change. 280 00:17:10,880 --> 00:17:15,560 And we also have the conventional graphing capabilities that 123 release 1A has. 281 00:17:15,560 --> 00:17:19,680 What is new about words and figures, besides a very high performance spreadsheet, is the 282 00:17:19,680 --> 00:17:22,240 addition of a simple to use word processor. 283 00:17:22,240 --> 00:17:28,320 So you can simply start by saying the results for the year. 284 00:17:28,320 --> 00:17:30,760 So you press one key and boom, you're into a word processor. 285 00:17:30,760 --> 00:17:31,760 Exactly. 286 00:17:31,760 --> 00:17:32,760 Rather than have to reload. 287 00:17:32,760 --> 00:17:33,760 Exactly. 288 00:17:33,760 --> 00:17:34,760 And the word processor feels like a real word processor. 289 00:17:34,760 --> 00:17:35,760 It does not feel like a spreadsheet. 290 00:17:35,760 --> 00:17:40,800 A lot of people use 123 to write, but that is a very unkind way to do it. 291 00:17:40,800 --> 00:17:45,280 So here we write our report, bragging to the chairman about our results, and now we import 292 00:17:45,280 --> 00:17:47,300 the spreadsheet itself. 293 00:17:47,300 --> 00:17:51,960 So we say, bring me the first 10 rows of the spreadsheet. 294 00:17:51,960 --> 00:17:53,800 And sure enough, here they are. 295 00:17:53,800 --> 00:17:57,080 Now not only are they here present in the word processor, but they're also live. 296 00:17:57,080 --> 00:18:01,360 Notice that my cursor now looks like the conventional spreadsheet cursor. 297 00:18:01,360 --> 00:18:05,520 And if in fact I change these numbers right here to a large number, all of the numbers 298 00:18:05,520 --> 00:18:06,520 are recalculated. 299 00:18:06,520 --> 00:18:09,800 If I take a look at my spreadsheet, sure enough, the spreadsheet was also recalculated. 300 00:18:09,800 --> 00:18:12,520 So you can operate on the spreadsheet inside the word processor. 301 00:18:12,520 --> 00:18:13,520 And vice versa. 302 00:18:13,520 --> 00:18:17,120 I mean, any change made in one is reflected automatically in the other. 303 00:18:17,120 --> 00:18:20,240 And then to make it even more interesting, for example, you can split the screen into 304 00:18:20,240 --> 00:18:21,240 two windows. 305 00:18:21,240 --> 00:18:22,960 Here we have a horizontal window. 306 00:18:22,960 --> 00:18:25,480 And let's turn this one into a word processing window. 307 00:18:25,480 --> 00:18:29,840 So you can be composing the text in here while you're viewing the spreadsheet in the other 308 00:18:29,840 --> 00:18:30,840 window. 309 00:18:30,840 --> 00:18:35,120 And if you change one number here, sure enough, it will change in the other one. 310 00:18:35,120 --> 00:18:36,840 There it is. 311 00:18:36,840 --> 00:18:37,840 OK. 312 00:18:37,840 --> 00:18:41,320 Is the word processor a so-called full-powered word processor? 313 00:18:41,320 --> 00:18:44,320 No, the word processor will not put a display right out of business. 314 00:18:44,320 --> 00:18:49,000 It is designed specifically to be a compatible word processor with the spreadsheet. 315 00:18:49,000 --> 00:18:53,200 For example, some of the things you notice in the word processor is that it uses a normal 316 00:18:53,200 --> 00:18:55,200 slash and the menu bar. 317 00:18:55,200 --> 00:18:58,600 So it feels very much like a spreadsheet, but it does all the things you expect. 318 00:18:58,600 --> 00:19:02,040 So it's just a layer on top of the spreadsheet, a simple layer on top of the spreadsheet, 319 00:19:02,040 --> 00:19:03,040 then? 320 00:19:03,040 --> 00:19:04,040 Yes, the word processor. 321 00:19:04,040 --> 00:19:07,280 Camilo, if you can unload words and figures there so we can get ready to take a look at 322 00:19:07,280 --> 00:19:08,280 Predicta. 323 00:19:08,280 --> 00:19:10,520 And Richard, let's follow up on Gary's question before. 324 00:19:10,520 --> 00:19:13,320 You talked about using uncertainty inside a spreadsheet. 325 00:19:13,320 --> 00:19:14,320 Explain that a little bit more. 326 00:19:14,320 --> 00:19:18,880 Well, basically, when people talk about uncertain things, they talk about, they make statements 327 00:19:18,880 --> 00:19:23,600 like my sales will be between two various numbers and this one's going to be more possible 328 00:19:23,600 --> 00:19:24,600 than another one. 329 00:19:24,600 --> 00:19:28,360 They aren't really dealing with absolute numbers the way they do in a typical spreadsheet. 330 00:19:28,360 --> 00:19:30,800 Which forces you to put a specific number in there. 331 00:19:30,800 --> 00:19:31,800 Exactly. 332 00:19:31,800 --> 00:19:34,800 And if you don't have the capability of representing uncertainty, then when you do present the 333 00:19:34,800 --> 00:19:38,840 results in these forecasts, what you're doing is leaving out the majority of the data that 334 00:19:38,840 --> 00:19:39,840 you're really talking about. 335 00:19:39,840 --> 00:19:44,040 And what Predicta enables you to do is to encapsulate all of the possibilities for a 336 00:19:44,040 --> 00:19:47,800 particular variable on your spreadsheet with all the probabilities associated with that 337 00:19:47,800 --> 00:19:50,080 and do calculations based on those probabilities. 338 00:19:50,080 --> 00:19:51,080 Could you show us how you do that? 339 00:19:51,080 --> 00:19:52,080 Sure, absolutely. 340 00:19:52,080 --> 00:19:54,720 Let me just bring up the predict here. 341 00:19:54,720 --> 00:19:57,760 The best way to show it is to sort of give a comparison, if you will, between the way 342 00:19:57,760 --> 00:20:01,600 people use spreadsheets and the way you would use predict in a similar situation. 343 00:20:01,600 --> 00:20:05,880 I can just restore a little sheet here. 344 00:20:05,880 --> 00:20:07,960 This is the most simple business model you could have. 345 00:20:07,960 --> 00:20:09,680 Sales, costs, and then profits. 346 00:20:09,680 --> 00:20:13,160 And what I can do is go down here and show you what a spreadsheet user might do. 347 00:20:13,160 --> 00:20:18,840 For example, he might say that his sales are, let's say, $1,000 and come down here and say 348 00:20:18,840 --> 00:20:22,000 that his costs are $500. 349 00:20:22,000 --> 00:20:25,360 And then doing a calculation to calculate the difference between the two to show what 350 00:20:25,360 --> 00:20:27,920 the profits are, in this case, something like this. 351 00:20:27,920 --> 00:20:32,000 OK, so your sales minus your costs are going to equal your profits there. 352 00:20:32,000 --> 00:20:33,000 Mm-hmm. 353 00:20:33,000 --> 00:20:34,000 OK. 354 00:20:34,000 --> 00:20:35,720 All right, and that gives me a number. 355 00:20:35,720 --> 00:20:37,760 Now, in a spreadsheet, that works very nicely. 356 00:20:37,760 --> 00:20:41,160 If I want to do what is, I have to go around and change those numbers and record all the 357 00:20:41,160 --> 00:20:42,520 different values. 358 00:20:42,520 --> 00:20:44,800 With predict, however, I can do something a bit different. 359 00:20:44,800 --> 00:20:48,720 I can actually represent all the values for a particular variable, in this case, sales, 360 00:20:48,720 --> 00:20:50,000 in a single cell. 361 00:20:50,000 --> 00:20:53,080 And I do that by creating what is called a distribution. 362 00:20:53,080 --> 00:20:56,600 Predict has eight of these that are predefined and one that you can define yourself. 363 00:20:56,600 --> 00:21:01,000 Now, in the case that I just mentioned, let's say my sales are between 500 and 1,000, most 364 00:21:01,000 --> 00:21:02,720 likely, let's say, 700. 365 00:21:02,720 --> 00:21:05,260 That's what we call a triangular distribution. 366 00:21:05,260 --> 00:21:09,600 I can tell predict to do or maintain, if you will, a list of 100 what-ifs and then put 367 00:21:09,600 --> 00:21:11,120 in the values for the distribution. 368 00:21:11,120 --> 00:21:18,080 Let's say 500 as my minimum, 700 is my most likely, and 1,000 as my maximum. 369 00:21:18,080 --> 00:21:19,800 And I've created a probability distribution. 370 00:21:19,800 --> 00:21:21,480 I can do the same thing for cost. 371 00:21:21,480 --> 00:21:25,240 Let's say that I would say my cost would be between 300 and $700. 372 00:21:25,240 --> 00:21:28,680 And that's a uniform distribution because it doesn't really have a middle point. 373 00:21:28,680 --> 00:21:31,680 Again, I'll keep track of 100 what-ifs. 374 00:21:31,680 --> 00:21:35,000 And I can keep track of up to 8,000 if I want. 375 00:21:35,000 --> 00:21:37,760 And let's say between 300 and 700. 376 00:21:37,760 --> 00:21:40,000 So you're just putting in your min, your max there. 377 00:21:40,000 --> 00:21:41,000 Exactly. 378 00:21:41,000 --> 00:21:45,720 Now, the nice feature, actually, the major feature of predict is its ability to do the 379 00:21:45,720 --> 00:21:50,520 same sort of calculations you would in a spreadsheet, but to maintain all of the results that you 380 00:21:50,520 --> 00:21:52,200 would do for each one of those what-ifs. 381 00:21:52,200 --> 00:21:54,240 So I can create a list of values. 382 00:21:54,240 --> 00:21:58,640 And rather than an initial list, which might be historical data, I can create it in an 383 00:21:58,640 --> 00:22:06,320 output sense, creating 100 values given my calculation, in this case, F7 minus F9. 384 00:22:06,320 --> 00:22:11,800 Now I can ask predict to go out and do 100 what-ifs automatically just by giving it that. 385 00:22:11,800 --> 00:22:16,520 And as you can see, the system is picking values from each of those two probability 386 00:22:16,520 --> 00:22:20,240 distributions and calculating values in the profit cell. 387 00:22:20,240 --> 00:22:24,200 And at the bottom of the screen, it's telling me how much time I have left until my calculations 388 00:22:24,200 --> 00:22:25,560 are done. 389 00:22:25,560 --> 00:22:30,200 The real question is now that all those values have been generated, what can we do with them? 390 00:22:30,200 --> 00:22:34,580 Predict has a number of features built in as spreadsheet features to handle probability 391 00:22:34,580 --> 00:22:38,480 distributions in terms of displays, and for example, graphics. 392 00:22:38,480 --> 00:22:39,480 So it's done its 100 calculations. 393 00:22:39,480 --> 00:22:40,720 How do you look at this now? 394 00:22:40,720 --> 00:22:41,720 Right. 395 00:22:41,720 --> 00:22:45,320 Well, one of the ways, most comprehensively, to look at a lot of data is to draw a graph. 396 00:22:45,320 --> 00:22:50,280 I can do that, let's say, by bringing down my profits graph here and looking at the information 397 00:22:50,280 --> 00:22:51,800 in this cell, F11. 398 00:22:51,800 --> 00:22:53,520 But not just the number that's on the screen. 399 00:22:53,520 --> 00:22:55,680 I want to look at all the values that have been generated. 400 00:22:55,680 --> 00:22:58,280 So I put a dollar sign on there. 401 00:22:58,280 --> 00:23:01,960 And now predict will take those 100 values and create a probability distribution. 402 00:23:01,960 --> 00:23:06,200 And that will be shown in a graph here in a second. 403 00:23:06,200 --> 00:23:08,040 Now, we can see a number of things here. 404 00:23:08,040 --> 00:23:12,640 We can see that there's some probability of a loss over towards the minus side. 405 00:23:12,640 --> 00:23:15,680 There's a much greater probability of a profit in this small business plan. 406 00:23:15,680 --> 00:23:18,400 And we can also see what the most likely value would be on the graph. 407 00:23:18,400 --> 00:23:20,520 Can you calculate the odds of a loss? 408 00:23:20,520 --> 00:23:21,520 Sure. 409 00:23:21,520 --> 00:23:25,720 There's functionality, for example, with this perform calculate function that allows me 410 00:23:25,720 --> 00:23:32,520 to see, let's say, the chance of a number being wildly negative in that cell. 411 00:23:32,520 --> 00:23:34,200 And the answer is 8%. 412 00:23:34,200 --> 00:23:37,320 That's right. 413 00:23:37,320 --> 00:23:41,120 What about the, we saw the new Mac 2 just before, and of course we know about the new 414 00:23:41,120 --> 00:23:43,200 IBM personal system 2. 415 00:23:43,200 --> 00:23:46,600 What are the consequences of that new IBM system in terms of you guys who are developing 416 00:23:46,600 --> 00:23:47,600 software? 417 00:23:47,600 --> 00:23:52,320 Well, from our standpoint, obviously, people are demanding techniques such as these, which 418 00:23:52,320 --> 00:23:55,240 involve a lot more computations and a lot more data being stored. 419 00:23:55,240 --> 00:24:00,040 And obviously, the faster the machines and the more data that they can store, going beyond, 420 00:24:00,040 --> 00:24:04,080 let's say, the 640K limit, is a boon to products like ours. 421 00:24:04,080 --> 00:24:05,760 And what about the graphical interface? 422 00:24:05,760 --> 00:24:08,960 Are we going to see that as a standard application interface? 423 00:24:08,960 --> 00:24:09,960 Well, I don't know. 424 00:24:09,960 --> 00:24:14,240 I mean, the fact is that people are very much used to seeing things in this format. 425 00:24:14,240 --> 00:24:18,120 There are 2, 3, 4 million spreadsheet users in the world that use it exactly as you see 426 00:24:18,120 --> 00:24:19,120 there. 427 00:24:19,120 --> 00:24:22,000 Whether they want to learn something else to get the job done, only time will tell. 428 00:24:22,000 --> 00:24:23,240 Gentlemen, we're out of time. 429 00:24:23,240 --> 00:24:24,240 Thank you very much. 430 00:24:24,240 --> 00:24:25,240 That completes our look at spreadsheets. 431 00:24:25,240 --> 00:24:29,720 We'll be back next week with part 4 of this business application series looking at database 432 00:24:29,720 --> 00:24:31,760 managers, so be sure to join us then. 433 00:24:31,760 --> 00:24:45,040 Right now, stay tuned for this week's computer news. 434 00:24:45,040 --> 00:24:49,240 I'm Susan Chase sitting in for Stuart Shafae in the Random Access File this week. 435 00:24:49,240 --> 00:24:54,240 Lotus Development Corporation has signed a 10-year agreement with IBM to design software 436 00:24:54,240 --> 00:24:59,960 for its largest computers, starting with a version of 123 for the System 370 mainframes. 437 00:24:59,960 --> 00:25:04,680 The deal puts Lotus on a more even footing with Microsoft, which recently overtook Lotus 438 00:25:04,680 --> 00:25:09,680 as the world's largest manufacturer of PC software and has long had a working relationship 439 00:25:09,680 --> 00:25:11,200 with IBM. 440 00:25:11,200 --> 00:25:15,800 Its most devastating effect will be on Ashton Tate, the only one of the big three software 441 00:25:15,800 --> 00:25:18,220 makers without such a relationship. 442 00:25:18,220 --> 00:25:22,200 The new version of 123 will not be available until next year. 443 00:25:22,200 --> 00:25:27,640 Lotus also announced two other versions of 123 with multi-dimensional support capability, 444 00:25:27,640 --> 00:25:34,440 a line of multi-user database programs, and an enhanced programming capability for 123. 445 00:25:34,440 --> 00:25:37,280 And the race for the fastest computers continues. 446 00:25:37,280 --> 00:25:43,600 ETA Systems recently unveiled the ETA10, a supercomputer capable of processing 10 billion 447 00:25:43,600 --> 00:25:45,400 calculations per second. 448 00:25:45,400 --> 00:25:50,280 ETA, a controlled data subsidiary, claims the new machine has twice the performance 449 00:25:50,280 --> 00:25:53,400 of supercomputers made by industry leader Cray Research. 450 00:25:53,400 --> 00:25:59,320 Cray, on the other hand, believes their Cray 2 is three times faster than the ETA10. 451 00:25:59,320 --> 00:26:03,720 And further competition comes from thinking machines, with their announcement of a machine 452 00:26:03,720 --> 00:26:09,480 that reportedly outperforms both ETA10 and Cray 2 on some tasks. 453 00:26:09,480 --> 00:26:14,080 Apple Computer plans to create an independent software company to promote the creation of 454 00:26:14,080 --> 00:26:17,200 programs for its computers by small developers. 455 00:26:17,200 --> 00:26:21,400 The new Apple company will sell programs written by other companies who would not otherwise 456 00:26:21,400 --> 00:26:25,040 have the resources to market and distribute their products. 457 00:26:25,040 --> 00:26:29,740 In addition, it will sell programs currently published by Apple, but under its own label. 458 00:26:29,740 --> 00:26:33,960 Apple sees these new products as a way of stimulating sales of its computers by making 459 00:26:33,960 --> 00:26:36,380 them capable of doing more things. 460 00:26:36,380 --> 00:26:40,800 Now it's time for this week's software review, and here's Paul Schindler. 461 00:26:40,800 --> 00:26:43,620 Outlines obscure details. 462 00:26:43,620 --> 00:26:46,280 The same is true of many outliners now on the market. 463 00:26:46,280 --> 00:26:48,660 They tend to obscure rather than illuminate. 464 00:26:48,660 --> 00:26:52,600 Now that was before Moore, a most graphical outliner and database. 465 00:26:52,600 --> 00:26:56,720 First of all, as a simple outliner, it offers you the option of looking at any outline in 466 00:26:56,720 --> 00:27:01,800 three different graphic formats, tree, bullet, or outline. 467 00:27:01,800 --> 00:27:05,720 You can hop back and forth between various levels of detail. 468 00:27:05,720 --> 00:27:10,400 In addition, you can change fonts, add lines, eliminate the menu at the bottom, change numbers 469 00:27:10,400 --> 00:27:13,760 to bullets, and use Moore to create overhead slides. 470 00:27:13,760 --> 00:27:16,600 Now if that were all it could do, Moore would be cute. 471 00:27:16,600 --> 00:27:20,320 But you can also have six different files open at once on the screen. 472 00:27:20,320 --> 00:27:22,720 And Moore can total figures within the outline. 473 00:27:22,720 --> 00:27:24,440 Actually, Moore does many things. 474 00:27:24,440 --> 00:27:26,380 It can do memos and letters. 475 00:27:26,380 --> 00:27:28,040 It can keep an online calendar. 476 00:27:28,040 --> 00:27:30,100 Now suppose you want to keep your calendar in Moore. 477 00:27:30,100 --> 00:27:34,800 You bring up a calendar, drag the mouse across it, and Moore will create a calendar outline. 478 00:27:34,800 --> 00:27:39,760 Other templates can be used for expenses, order entry, or an address book. 479 00:27:39,760 --> 00:27:44,400 Moore is an outliner for use on the Apple Macintosh, $295 from Living Video Text of 480 00:27:44,400 --> 00:27:46,020 Mountain View, California. 481 00:27:46,020 --> 00:27:48,600 For the Computer Chronicles, I'm Paul Schindler. 482 00:27:48,600 --> 00:27:54,040 And that's it for this week's Computer Chronicles. 483 00:27:54,040 --> 00:27:58,400 The Computer Chronicles is made possible by Leading Edge, makers of IBM-compatible computer 484 00:27:58,400 --> 00:28:02,960 systems including word processing with spelling correction, communication software, and Hays 485 00:28:02,960 --> 00:28:06,360 compatible 1200 and 2400 baud modems. 486 00:28:06,360 --> 00:28:09,800 Leading Edge, with over 1,000 service centers nationwide. 487 00:28:09,800 --> 00:28:12,720 Leading Edge, leading the way to the information age. 488 00:28:12,720 --> 00:28:16,480 Additional funding is provided by McGraw-Hill, publishers of Byte. 489 00:28:16,480 --> 00:28:20,980 Byte's detailed technical articles on new hardware, software, and languages cover developments 490 00:28:20,980 --> 00:28:42,040 in computer technology worldwide.